Children who grip their pens too close to the writing point are likely to be at a disadvantage in examinations,【C1】______to the first serious investigation into the way in which writing technique can dramatically affect educational achievement. The survey of 643 children and adults, ranking from pre-school to 40-plus, also suggests【C2】______penholding techniques have deteriorated sharply over one generation, with teachers now paying far【C3】______attention to correct pen grip and handwriting style. Stephanie Thomas, a learning support teacher【C4】______findings have been published, was inspired to investigate this area【C5】______he noticed that those students who had the most trouble with spelling【C6】______had a poor pen grip. While Mr. Thomas could not establish a significant statistical link【C7】______pen-holding style. and accuracy in spelling,he【C8】______find huge differences in technique between the young children and the mature adults, and a definite【C9】______between near-point gripping and slow, illegible writing. People who【C10】______their pens at the writing point also show other characteristics【C11】______inhibit learning,【C12】______as poor posture,leaning too【C13】______to the desk,using four fingers to grip the pen【C14】______than three, and clumsy positioning of the thumb(which can obscure【C15】______is being written ). Mr. Thomas believes that the【C16】______between elder and younger writers is【C17】______too dramatic to be accounted for simply by the possibility that people get better at writing as they grow【C18】______. He attributes it to a failure to teach the most effective methods, pointing out that the differences between【C19】______groups coincides with the abandonment of formal handwriting instruction in classrooms in the sixties. 'The 30-year-old showed a huge diversity of grips,【C20】______the over 40s group all had a uniform. 'tripod' grip. ' 【C1】